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Yep. I definitely feel the Cirque du Soleil vibe in here. Great piece. I think I actually listened to it earlier this year, but due to my short attention span, I only skimmed it and decided it was weird. Oops.

Wow. Huge improvement here! I also noticed that the bells are back, which makes this piece sound much better. It's good that you started using dynamics at around 3:00, but it comes in too suddenly. You should at least have the piano and strings building through the section before so it doesn't just attack the listeners when they're offguard. The drums, especially towards the beginning, still sound a little dead. They lack energy. However, I don't think you should change them. Instead, and this is just a suggestion, try pushing the tempo of the entire piece a little (I'm trying this by adjusting speeds with Windows Media Player to see how it sounds, and it's actually worth a shot). Then, towrds th end of the piano part, where the huge build should happen, you could also slow it down to the tempo you've got now and it would sound awesome. Just a thought. It might not work at all. Great improvements so far! Keep it up!

About the percussion... This piece sounds very orchestral, so you could avoid generic drumbeats altogether and opt for more traditional percussion (listen to some of Vampire Hunter Dan's pieces, he's got some great orchestral stuff). If you still want to use the drumset sound instead, just don't let it mindlessly loop. Listen to each section without the drums, and see where the main beats should go and what sections should have less drums for contrast. Percussion has never been my strong suit either. Just work with it until you come up with something you like. Good luck.

Yep. This latest one sounds much cleaner. I'm hearing some parts I hadn't heard before, and that's a good thing. The only thing that still kinda bugs me is the melody that comes in at :44. You expect to hear the Angel Island music, but instead comes this harmony to Angel Island pretending to be the lead. It may just be a personal preference, and I can tell what you're aiming for, but it just doesn't sound right to me. It sounds like something that would fit well later in the piece, after the main melody has been established. Do what you will with it. The rest of the piece is great, and I don't have any other real complaints.

Wow. This sounds great! I agree with SynthesizedStampede and Rozovian though: it just feels like it needs more. I get this feeling that some awesome build is about to happen, but it just... doesn't. I love the percusion in this. The (bongos? congos? I always get them mixed up) and high pitched clangs really create an epic, almost tribal, atmosphere that's perfect for a volcano. Great stuff so far! This one's got a lot of potential. Good luck.

The beginning sounds weird now... it's like you can only hear the harmony that's supposed to be staying in the background but is covering up the melody instead. I know you're going for "more interpretation", but I'm not sure about the overall effect. Other than that, I still like the bridges, and the ending is still very abrupt. Maybe the sixth time's the charm?..

All I can say is I feel like my ears are being assaulted by noise, which isn't something musicians usually go for. The main cause is the evil guitar that comes in at :30 (how can you call it a guitar after all the distortion?) It doesn't really add much musically, and it's covering up some really cool parts. The noise problem also comes from some of the synths, especially in the higher ranges (2:02!). I really like the intro and outro, even if they are a little repetitive. Clean up the noise! The piece will be better for it!

I personally like it better with the bells in there. The newer drums are a definite improvement; they no longer sound as synthetic, but they still seem to entirely match with the music. It's like listening to a beautiful orchestral piece with drum loops over it. I also really like the audience noises. Overall, it's a good piece. Fix the drums, and it could be a great piece. Keep it up!

Well, I'm pretty new at this too, but so far, I like it, especially the intro. Other than that, you probably need to have more variation in there. Everybody's heard King K. Rool before, so come up with something unique that make this piece stand out. Oh, and the violin/fiddle/whatever that comes in at 1:20 sounds very bland. Give it some shaping (dynamics, vibratto, something). Hope that helps. It sounds good so far!

Well. This made my entire wretched day great! Thanks!

This is great stuff. I don't know what you could add to this or if you'd actually want to. I heard it for the first time a few minutes ago, but it looks like this project has been going on for quite a while. I'd say it was worth it, because I instantly loved it. Submit this!

Great arrangement so far! The intro could use more depth in my opinion, but once it starts rocking, it sounds really good. Definitely finish this one!

Wow, great mix. I'd agree that the only issue is the cluttered intro, which mostly comes from the percussion. It's not a problem once the other parts come in, and even at the beginning, it's a pretty minor issue. Good Luck on submitting this!

When the melody comes in at around :30, it sounds sorta bland (what if the main lead was an octave higher? just a thought). I loved the first bridge, especially 1:12, and the second bridge helps because the rest of the piece is very repetitive. The key change at 2:51 also helps change things up and is very fluid and subtle (I didn't even notice it the first time). As for the ending, it just -- ends. I don't know if that's what you were going for or if you just haven't finished yet, but it's very abrupt. Very good piece. It just needs a few tweaks.

Overall, it sounds very good, but the bassline and cymbals make it... jarring. I found myself having to turn the volume down, but then I couldn't hear the melody. Don't get me wrong; the bassline is awesome. It's just also very loud, and that kinda takes away from the piece. The music is there, it just seems like its buried.

Maybe I'm biased because I loved the source music so much, but I think this sounds great, and I think the stranger chord desicions worked well. Like many, my only issue is with the high notes. I'm not sure what the best way to fix this would be, since simply turning down those tracks would make the entire thing sound muted. As it is, the high notes are tolerable, but getting rid of the ear-piercing sounds and still maintaining clarity would really make this piece. Great job so far and good luck to you!

I can't add much that wasn't already said. There are really good moments in here, but they're overshadowed by the iffy parts that need to be looked at again (1:50-1:55!). Good luck.

I'd definitely go with the ES version, simply because seems to have more energy, and the break at about 2:15 captures the smooth feel of the SO version, giving it the best of both worlds. Overall a very solid track.